• Napolitano issues additional action directives

    DHS secretary Napolitano issues additional Action Directives on cyber security and northern border strategy

  • USDA's IG warns about flood of genetically modified crops

    Experts expect the number of genetically modified crops and traits, and the number of countries producing them, to double by 2015, raising the risks of imports of GM crops unknown to the USDA; worry centers on countries such as China, India, and Brazil where health and safety standards are more lax

  • Obama administration to support telco immunity over domestic spying

    Eric Holder, nominee for attorney general, says the incoming Obama administration will support congressional legislation immunizing U.S. telecommunication companies from lawsuits about their participation in the Bush administration’s domestic spy program

  • DHS delays e-verify requirement for contractors

    E-Verify was supposed to take effect 15 January, but was delayed to 20 February; system allows employers to verify their employees’ eligibility to work legally in the United States

  • The top 11 contaminants in U.S. drinking water

    U.S. citizens may upset to learn — should be upset to learn — that their drinking water contain disturbing amounts of pharmaceuticals and hormonally active chemicals; the concentrations are small, for now, but individuals with some health conditions should consult their physicians

  • TSA has processed more than 1 million commercial HAZMAT applications

    Since the HAZMAT driver’s license screening process was launched nearly four years ago, TSA has completed a review of 1,015,660 applications and approved more than 1 million

  • U.K.'s new way to prevent people from assuming identity of deceased persons

    A new — and controversial — regulation allows U.K. government agencies more sharing of personal data they hold of U.K. citizens; the Home Office says one benefit of the new regulation is better prevention of fraudsters assuming the identity of dead people

  • DHS expands biometric info collection to include green card holders

    DHS will begin to collect biometric data from permanent residents of the United States and from refugees; new rule, to go into effect on 18 January 2009, will include “nearly all aliens,” except Canadian citizens on brief visits

  • New guide for truck cargo security

    Some 80 percent of all communities in the United States rely solely on trucks for the products and goods they receive, including food, books, clothing, electronics, automobiles, and medical supplies; making sure these trucks and their cargo are safe is thus an essential part of securing the home front

  • New U.S.-bound cargo security rule to go into effect in January

    Current security regulations required importers and shippers to file entry information with U.S. Customs fifteen days before a ship arrives at a U.S. port; new regulations will require that shippers file much more detailed information — and do so before they even load the merchandise onto their ship at the port of origin; U.S. Customs will demand that suspicious cargo, or cargo about which the information is incomplete, not be loaded

  • FAA makes special flight rules around Washington, D.C. permanent

    In order to keep Washington,D.C. safe from 9/11-like aerial attacks by terrorists while reducing the economic impact on the general aviation community, the FAA reduces the protective air envelope around the U.S. capital by 1,800 square miles of airspace

  • H2-B visa program to be streamlined, simplified

    The H2-B visa program allows foreign workers into the United States for specific seasonal jobs; the program is capped at 66,000 workers per year; regulatory changes in the waning days of the administration aim to set in place policies favored by the business sector

  • The next version of FISMA

    The first version of the Federal Information Security Act (FISMA) of 2002 placed much emphasis on auditing and reporting; it is time to move on beyond checking compliance boxes and concentrate on making sure that the security of government departments is not compromised

  • Defining on line attacks and cyberwar

    The growing number of cyberattacks — for political reasons (Estonia, Georgia) and for profit — prompts calls to define the threat more clearly

  • Devolution of risk management

    In response to the savings and loan scandal of two decades ago, the United States has enhanced the regulatory and compliance regime (FDICIA, SOX); problem is, compliance or regulation is necessarily historically based — it addresses the sins of the past and is not designed to anticipate the future